Blood Bonds
by The Bloody Red Queen Of Angst
Summary: This story comes as a prequel to "Love Like Death." Though the readers of "Love Like Death" may not know this...in my head I had a complete back story that would explain the Fruits Basket cannon view of Kyo being ostracize by the other members of the vampire family like Haru and Yuki. Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket, and y'all can keep Kyo Sohma. *Complete*
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Okay...this comes as a request from a very special author, soon-to-be birthday girl, SweetLiars. She gave me only two parameters for this request. That it be a vampire tale with Kyo...and...she also made me promise NOT to abuse him. So this should be interesting.**

**But a fair warning, my friend. Just because I promised to leave him unharmed...does NOT mean that I wont make him cry. I made no such promise.**

**That being said...this story comes as a prequel to "Love Like Death." Though the readers of "Love Like Death" may not know this...in my head I had a complete back story that would explain the Fruits Basket cannon view of Kyo being ostracize by the other members of the vampire family like Haru and Yuki.**

**This...is that story.**

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He wanted to scream out in anguish. To release the tormented shrieks maliciously trapped along his dried, cracked lips, unwilling to leave him. Taunting him.

No one would help him now.

And...the pain was far too great for him to bear for long.

He was dying.

Tears silently trailed down his cheeks as he coughed and sputtered up blood, causing excruciating pain throughout his broken body as the vile taste of it filled his mouth. His fading vision flitted for a moment. Desperately seeking out help he ready knew would never come.

He...didn't want to die. And this thought alone blurred his vision with the tears that followed.

Staring at the vast expanse of the sky above him, he suddenly felt so very small. And scared. He felt...scared. Where would he go...when he died? His mother had always told him of a wonderful place. Heaven. Nirvana. Paradise. She had called it so many things. All of them sounding so very beautiful. And...when she had passed away...he had spend endless days on his back...staring at this same sky. Imagining that she had finally made it to the beautiful place she had always described.

Would he see her...when he died?

Would she approve of the person he had become?

...he...didn't know... And the pain made it so very difficult to hold tight to this unanswered question.

Every bone in his body had been shattered. Like glass as he had fallen. And...he could feel the anguish of his soul leaving his broken body. Heavy, weighted gasps began to rock his chest. He couldn't breathe. Cold panic washed over him with this new sensation as he tried to draw in a labored breath, only to cough up more of his own crimson life.

His vision began to fade and dim, and...at first...he hadn't even noticed the gentle face lingering above him. The quickly fading light played against the shadows of this being. A face so startlingly beautiful that he wondered, for a moment, if he had actually moved on to the life beyond.

...the one his mother had spoken of...

But, there was still so much pain. Everywhere. This couldn't possibly be the Eden foretold in his youth. Nothing so beautiful could possibly carry this much agony. And fresh tears found their way to paint his face as the ethereal being continued to gaze down upon him in silent pity.

If...he had died...

And...he wasn't in Heaven.

...then...

"Have you come to end my pain?" These words came barely whispered along his blood stained lips, yet the phantom remained silent.

Intensely beautiful sliver hair came radiant against the fading sunlight, creating the softest of halos that matched equally soft, warm gray eyes. Like the sky just before it would rain. Tears of the angels. That's what his mother had always called the rain...to make him less fearful of the approaching storm. And, these eyes held such sweet sorrow. For him? For his pain? An angel. Was...this creature an angel? But surely Paradise was not this cruel. And...this being before him was only proof that he was no longer among the living.

"What are you?" This question came pained under the weight of the breath used to produce it...yet silence still followed, the entity that lingered above him remaining unmoved.

"An angel?" He whispered, only to watch the beautiful creature furrow their brows, their grief only seeming to deepen.

"A demon then...?" This breathless question followed, and the gentle eyes gazing tenderly down upon him gave the slightest flicker of recognition.

"I am." The gently murmured response came unearthly in its celestial, chime-like quality, and he began to sob.

The sobs came pained and horrifically marred by sputtered gasps and bloodied expiration. He had wanted to see his mother again. Had hoped. A fanciful dream that had been completely shattered with the brokenness of his body and appearance of this beautiful creature. And he couldn't stop the helpless tears.

He was damned.

"Ssh..." The voice came comforting, soothing his distress as gentle fingers quickly followed suit to brush away his tears. "Peace."

"Do you want to live, child?" The beautiful chime-like question floated through the space around them as he watched the entity patiently wait for his response.

_'...do you want to live...'_

He didn't understand. What this meant. What this ethereal being was offering him. He had already entered into the world beyond, hadn't he? How could this creature ask such a question of the dead?

"I don't understand." He whispered, this action only drawing him closer to his end.

"I will give you life...if you wish it." Bloodless lips murmured quietly before twisting in a grim expression. "But it will be a life of darkness and torment, child." Soft gray eyes stared intently at him, gauging his awareness. "...and...there will be pain. Pain the likes of which you have not yet experienced."

His chest became weighted and dangerously heavy. And he worked so furiously to draw in the air around him in desperation. With each breath came new pain. Jagged shards shredding him into oblivion from the very inside. Or maybe those were simply the very real blades of his broken bones ripping him to pieces. He didn't know. But...he imagined that there couldn't possibly be a greater pain than this. His chest heaved under the agony as more blood spilled up over his lips. Though the sight must have been disturbing, the celestial creature never turned away, their gentle gaze remaining steadfast and intent.

"Know that if you do not desire this fate, I _will_ take mercy on you and end your suffering, child." The expression came soft and filled with compassion before drifting towards him. "Do you accept?" This question came in a whisper of warm breath against his ear, causing his breath to painfully hitch in his broken body.

"I don't want to die." Was the only response...a breathless sob of concession.

Before he was even able to protest, he felt his shattered body wrapped up and lifted from the ground. But...the action had been so warm. So tender that there was barely any pain at all. Helplessly resting his head cradled against this phantom, he wished that he could stay like this forever. Feeling himself drifting further away from consciousness, he scarcely registered the gentle lips that lingered along the cold flesh of his neck.

"Forgive me..." These two words were mouthed in anguish against his skin through parted lips.

And then...

Then...there was pain.

A violence to his body so excruciating that, despite his brokenness, he screamed. And the arms that had wrapped him in safety and comfort now held him too tightly. The flesh of his neck had been violently broken and penetrated as once gentle lips now greedily drew out what little life was left in him.

Through his tormented screams came befuddled anguish. He didn't understand. This creature had promised him life. Yet these lips now drew his very life out in time and rhythm to his failing heartbeat. He...didn't understand.

Cradled in the very arms of Death itself, he was far too weak and frail to protest as the same lips met his own in a sudden kiss. A tongue gently beckoned entrance into his mouth as the sudden rush of hot, metallic liquid washed up and over his own tongue and down his throat. And as he feebly tried to cough it back up in rejection, a gentle voice soothed in his ear.

"Do not resist, child." The entity gently murmured to him, continuing to coddle him as a parent would an infant. "Your fight is almost over."

_'...your fight is almost over...'_ This thought lingered in his mind as the last of his breath freed itself from his body. And as the moment stilled and gently fell into an eery silence, the angelic being continued to hold on to the boy turned corpse. Waiting in patience, the celestial entity held fast. Knowing... Anticipating...

A breath drew itself into the lifeless body unbeckoned as shrieks and screams suddenly marred the silence. Writhing in a renewed sense of anguish, he felt arms wrap tighter around him to still his panic.

"What have you done?!" This tormented scream wrenched itself from his lips as he continued to twist in the arms that held him.

"Ssh..." This same voice lulled comfortingly in his ear. "It is finished...my son."

_'...son...'_ This word reverberated in his mind. Over and over as his now crimson gaze stared back at soft, gentle gray. _'...son...'_

"...what...am I?" He whispered as the arms gently released him, his hand unintentionally drifting towards his own neck.

"You...are my son. My beloved." The contours of beautiful perfection shaped themselves in warmth along the face that gazed upon him.

"I know you have questions." The voice of his savior continued to lull tenderly to him as a hand placed itself on the top of his head to ruffle his disheveled orange hair. "You will have your answers...in time. But for now, you must come with me." A tender smile shaped the creatures expression. "There is much for you to learn."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I sincerely hope you all enjoy this chapter! And that it entices your thirst for the next. Yes...pun TOTALLY intended.**

**Again, this story comes as a prequel to "Love Like Death" and is dedicated to SweetLiars for her upcoming birthday. This chapter was, in part, inspired by her curiosity about WHY Kyo was made.**

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"Kazuma?" The name came barely whispered, though he knew that it would be heard clearly all the same.

"Hm? What it is, my son?" Kazuma's warm gray eyes slowly trailed to the young man laying on his back, gazing at the vastness of the evening sky.

"There's...something I've been meaning to ask you." He murmured, his crimson gaze steady as he continued to stare towards the heavens.

"Oh?" These words came warm in their paternal interest. "What is it, child?" Crimson eyes simply stared forward, seemingly lacking in response to this invitation, but the young man was clearly deep in thought.

Though all of his senses, including his memory and thoughts, had been heightened...there was one moment that seemed to stand out among the rest. The memories...just before he had died.

And was remade.

Kyo remembered that specific experience with such clarity. His father, Kazuma, had explained that the memories just before one's end were often the most powerful. Bound to linger in their potency. But...there was something that had transpired that he didn't understand. Something he couldn't quite reconcile himself with. The expression on Kazuma's face. It had been so filled with...pity.

He...had pitied Kyo.

...and...that expression had always left a lingering question in Kyo's mind.

"Well..." Kyo began, closing his eyes as a sigh pushed itself through his nose, and Kazuma simply waited in patience for the boy to work through his question. "I've been wondering for a while now." He paused, lashes fluttering open to gaze up intently at Kazuma as he finally pushed himself to a sitting position.

"Did you save me _just_ because you felt sorry for me?" And though it might have appeared to the outside world that the boy met him with a petulant gaze, Kazuma knew his son well enough to know that this had been worrying the child for some time now...and...it had been extremely difficult for him to ask.

Kyo's fiercely independent and self-reliant temperament had never lent well to accepting charity. Worse yet, pity. But...there was an even deeper underlying fear he simply couldn't voice. That of being a burden.

...especially to those he held in high regard... Those he cared about.

Had his creator's act of pity made him a burden to the man now?

There had been so much that Kyo had needed to learn. Kazuma worked diligently with the boy to curb his hunger and more violent tenancies. Demanding discipline and self restraint...lessons that proved to be quite difficult for the naturally high-strung youth. But Kazuma had taken his time and patience in dealing with Kyo's fits of rage and frustration. Still...Kyo couldn't help but fear that this too, was out of pity.

"Well..." Kazuma began, the chime-like quality of his voice an instant salve to the boy's distress. "I was initially drawn to your injuries." He offered with the gentlest of smiles to the young man...and Kyo nodded in understanding.

There had been so much blood...

"And when I found you, I _did_ have pity in my heart, child." Kazuma admitted as he watched Kyo's expression furrow.

"But as I watched you...I saw something." Kazuma continued. "I saw such a fierceness in you, child. Such spirit and fire. Even in the face of your own end." Kazuma murmured thoughtfully, his words filled with such wisdom as he finished. "This...was something I have never seen in mortals before. And I knew that, if just shown the right path, you would not easily deviate from its course."

"I know that I have been hard on you, child." Kazuma offered, his expression sober as Kyo's gaze drifted to the ground. "But I could not be more proud of you as I am right now. My son." And he watched as the faintest of smile crept along the young man's lips.

"Thanks, Kazuma." Kyo murmured quietly before a gentle hand made contact with the top of his head to tenderly tousle his hair.

"But sometimes you can be such a troublesome son." Kazuma chuckled out this phrase of genuine love as the area filled with the sound of chime-like laughter. "Believe me, child, you will _need_ this fierceness. There...are others." His expression grew somber as he spoke, his soft gray eyes gazing intently at the young man next to him. "Others that do not share my..._temperance_."

"There are others?" Kyo asked, his expression completely befuddled. "Like us?" And he watched as Kazuma gave a gentle nod of concession. "Why haven't you ever told me?" His tone came bewildered at his master's revelation.

"Because..." Kazuma murmured, his angelic voice coming almost mournful. "...I know that they will _never_ embrace you as I have, my son."

"Why?!" The almost feral hiss slipped itself through Kyo's lips before silence fell upon the moment.

"...what aren't you telling me...?" Kyo murmured, his crimson gaze intently searching the face of his beloved creator.

"Before time..." Kazuma spoke, though his tone came so very distant and far removed from the present. "I was." He murmured this gentle statement before his gaze met Kyo's curious expression. "But...I was not alone."

"There were two others. Gemini. The twins of chaos and obedience. Yin and Yang, if you will. And I was the bridge of temperance that brought balance to our family." Though Kazuma spoke this tender word, 'family', Kyo felt that it held no fondness for him now.

"Together we witnessed the spark of human creation. We thought as one. Spoke as one. Acted as one." Kazuma murmured gently. "And together, we established the laws of our kind. To ensure a level of necessary structure, we agreed upon the first law. The highest of importance. Our gift of creation...of making ones in our own image." Kazuma trailed off, his gaze growing distant with weighted memory as he continued. "We reached harmonious accord that this gift should be reserved for the twin of obedience. The burden of creation, and all of its pain, fell on his shoulders. And his alone."

"But one fated day, Sister Chaos found herself entranced by a mortal. She...called him Akira. And...he called her lover. He became the object of her obsession. And when she could no longer be without him, she was driven to madness...and she broke our highest law." Kazuma's voice came so forlorn as he spoke these words. "She ushered him into our world of darkness..."

"You loved her, didn't you." Kyo murmured softly, drawing Kazuma up from his reverie as his gaze drifted towards the boy.

"I did. As I love you, child." Kazuma whispered this mournful concession to his son. "But my brother did not share my compassion for our beloved sister. He demanded obedience." He murmured lightly and, though Kyo couldn't be entirely sure, he thought...for a moment...that he had witnessed a tear trailing down Kazuma's cheek. "Obedience he enforced through swiftly dispatching her lover before ending our sister's existence." A pained expression of grief and regret washed over Kazuma's beautiful features before finishing. "He had sought out to restore order to our world. To remove the stain of chaos our sister had created. But, in wiping her away, he threw our family out of balance. And so...I left."

Silenced filled the area, surrounding the moment and enveloping it in a heaviness that became palatable. Kyo didn't even know where to begin. Where to start. What his master had just revealed left him with more questions than he could have imagined. Questions that left him deeply confused. And...afraid.

"So...he _killed_ her?" This question trembled along quivering lips as Kyo found himself desperately trying to understand. "We can _die_?" And warm, soft gray eyes smiled at him comfortingly.

"Do not fret, my son." He chuckled to the young man in an attempt to dispel his distress. "Death had her chance with you once, child. And you put up such a quarrel with her that I doubt she has the resolve to attempt to claim you a second time." And the smallest of smiles ghosted over Kyo's lips.

But as the two sat in silence together, Kyo simply couldn't wash himself of the fear that had settled itself along his skin. He had grown so accustomed to this new sense of invisibility that it had never even occurred to him that it could be stripped away.

"Kazuma..." His voice came softly on the heels of trepidation. "Am...I ever going to meet the others?"

"Yes." Kazuma murmured. "I suppose that...one day...you will need to meet them. We are...after all...family. All of us." He reasoned, more to himself than the child next to him, before his gaze drifted towards Kyo. "But today is not that day."

"Will..." Kyo whispered, his gaze intent as it met his beloved father. "...will anything happen to you..." His voice faded. "..because...of me?" And this fear was simply met with the lightest of laughter that seemed to effortlessly dispel his concern.

"You worry too much, my son." Kazuma responded warmly. "No matter my fate, child, I promise to you now that I will always protect you. You are precious to me, child, and I will always love you." And with the gentlest of touches to his shoulder, Kyo felt the weightlessness and security of his father's love.

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**A/N: As for love...show some. As a Valentine. In the form of a review. Not for Kyo. But for me. Happy Valentine's Day**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: So...this epilogue comes split into two. This is the first part. The beginning of the end. Enjoy!**

**And again, this story comes as an early birthday gift to SweetLiars, and is a prequel...a beginning...to my story "Love Like Death"**

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"Kyo..."

The gentle whisper of his name faded unnoticed into the background of more disturbing sounds. Sounds that chilled him to the very bone, though they were still so far away.

"Kyo."

Screams. Wailing. The hopeless lamentation of the dying. And then there was the smell. That smell.

Kyo had never experienced that smell before in his existence...though he knew what it was all the same. He knew it, because there was no way to mistake what it was. It was the overwhelmingly unmistakable stench...of death.

"Kyo!" His name came harshly snapped from the lips of his creator as Kyo's crimson gaze flickered to Kazuma's stern expression.

"Remember what I have told you." Kazuma murmured, his tone strict in its seriousness. "Keep your wits about you, child. Where we go, your safety is not yet guaranteed."

"I know..." Kyo's voice came small as he continued to gaze into Kazuma's warm, soft gray eyes.

"Here you will bear witness to many a great disturbing thing. But you _must_ keep silent, and hold your tongue. Say _nothing_ against what you see, child. Do you understand." Kazuma whispered to him, his words weighted and ominous.

"Yes." Kyo responded numbly, still so affected by the overpowering presence of death.

"Our kind is savage and unrelenting in their brutality, child. The rest of our family is not as disciplined as you. They do not share your steadfast determination to fight against the darker nature of our kind." He spoke, his gaze softening towards his son. "Remember why I chose you. Hold fast to your fierceness. Never forget that you are my son. My beloved." And before Kyo had words to speak, a gentle hand came to cup over his cheek.

"Come." Kazuma whispered tenderly, gazing into the young man's eyes. "It is time for us to go home, child."

As they made their approach to the compound, the sense of dread and stench of the dead and dying came so powerful that Kyo began to tremble despite his strength. There was something that told him, without doubt, that he should not be here. He should not have been ushered into this world.

Standing before this palace of death...Kyo knew. He should not exist in this world. And the fact that he did upset the very balance and natural order of things.

And he suddenly understood what his father had been trying to tell him...all this time. He would forever remain separated. Set apart. Even in this world separated from the living and the dead. But...his father believed he had the strength to endure this fate. So he walked by his creator's side, gaining a level of comfort in Kazuma's love for him.

He was loved. And...everything would be fine if Kazuma said it was so.

Stopping at the grand entrance of the estate, Kyo felt the gentlest of touches to his shoulder, gaining his attention as his crimson gaze drifted to his master.

"Speak to no one." Kazuma murmured to him. "Say nothing of who I am to you." His voice came stern as he continued. "You will wait for me where I leave you until I have spoken with my brother. Come when I call for you, but not until then. Do you understand." And Kyo was so beside himself with Kazuma's grave demeanor that all he could manage was a small nod of concession.

Upon entering the vast estate, Kyo was immediately met with the piercing shrieks that filled the vestibule. The sound came so filled with anguish that Kyo found himself completely startled out of his numbness. And he beheld a sight so deeply unsettling that he felt the very real, human compulsion to vomit.

Writhing in agony on the stone floor several feet ahead of him, was the almost wraith like figure of a young man. The child couldn't have been much older than himself when taken. And Kyo saw that, even it their current state of obvious starvation, they must have been claimed for their overwhelming beauty. Though another, equally beautiful white haired boy curled around his slender body to comfort him in his agony as they smoothed his breathtakingly striking silver hair, the child still screamed. A self induced torment that Kyo averted his gaze from as the boy began to violently shove his fingers down his own throat to induce vomiting as a pool of dark crimson blood came to splash and stain the stone floor beneath him.

The smell alone caused Kyo's stomach to violently churn as he continue to take in the child's lament of anguish, though his eyes squealed themselves shut against the scene. Kyo heard the torment that began through whispered gasps and panting.

"Forgive me my sins..." The child whispered deliriously. "Forgive me my sins..." He continued this chorus of repentance...over and over again as his voice began to build back up into hysteria.

"Let me die." The child wailed as the other boy attempted to sooth his distress.

"Ssh, Yuki. It will get easier. I promise." The other whispered to him, only to bring him back into crazed screams.

"Kill me! Kill me! Please! Master, just kill me! Please!" And Kyo's eyes helplessly fluttered open to this, only to see the young man so completely distressed that he had begun to weep tears of blood.

"What have you done, brother... This one should not have been made." Kyo heard this silent whisper come from beside him as his horrified gaze drifted towards Kazuma before gentle gray eyes met his own.

"This fate is not meant for all mortals. Sometimes death is a far more merciful gift." Kazuma explained soothingly before his gaze returned to the horrifying scene. "Stay here, child. I will call for you when I have spoken my peace." He murmured softly before walking ahead of the boy. "Remember what I told you. Remain silent."

Kazuma moved himself confidently through the halls of the estate. Though the others looked on, they dared not interfere with his approach. Silent footsteps encroached upon the sounds of anguish and death as Kazuma entered into the larger area of the estate. And what he beheld caused his delicate brows to furrow in revulsion.

All around him were ones like himself. Embracing mortal life in a tender caress of death to satisfy their hunger. Thirst. Lust. All of these things and more they sought from the flesh of mortals. Mortals soon to die in their embrace. And above them all, set apart, was one more beautiful than all the rest.

The celestial creature's skin came so radiantly translucent in its ethereal pallor, a paleness only amplified by the startling white of his kimono and the striking black inkiness of his hair. And in his arms was cradled a mortal woman. One who might have been deemed beautiful to the world of the living. Young. Curvacious underneath the layers of fabric that gracefully enfolded her. A painted whore. A Japanese concubine.

But now her beauty came so horribly marred in the face of her captor, who's own beauty by far outshone hers in its unearthly quality. Fingertips caressed the nape of her neck and along her collarbone like the soft touch of a lover as pale lips made their way to the flesh of her neck in gentle exploration. A pained gasp pulled itself into her body the lips finally found their resting place. Her life slowly fading with her beauty as she helplessly allowed her captor to take what they wanted.

"What manner of hell have you created in my absence?" The lightest of murmurs passed through Kazuma's lips to gently disturb the feeding as the multitude silently gazed at him...taking in his presence.

Thick lashes fluttered in recognition of Kazuma's voice as a deep, rich onyx gaze met his own. Lips detached themselves from the body weakened by impending death as the angelic being allowed the woman to slide down to the floor below. Her fate sealed. A thrill of exhilaration flickered along the expression of the ethereal being as his lips and cheekbones came freshly dusted the lightest shade of pink from the stolen kiss of death. Coming to his feet, the two stood in silence as the others looked on in anticipation.

A smile.

And the slowed tilt of the head.

"Kazuma." The voice of this creature came just as unearthly as his appearance in it's loveliness. "Ave, frater eius quos ego diligo." He whispered this warm greeting, causing Kazuma's expression to furrow in disapproval.

"Akito..."

Kazuma stood in silence before the angelic creature, and he watched as the expression of loveliness flitted in momentary discontent to his coldness before recovering their congeniality.

"You broke my heart when you left, yet you have come back to me after all this time. Long have I waited for your return, brother." Akito murmured, his voice coming like music in it's chime-like quality as he slowly approached Kazuma.

"Dispense with the pleasantries, Akito. I _know_ you have no love for me...'_brother_.'" Kazuma spat, causing Akito to still for a moment.

"I have much love for _all_ of my family, Kazuma. You know this." Akito responded, his expression placid in the face of his brother's lack of warmth.

"Love..." Kazuma mused bitterly, gazing into Akito's deep onyx eyes. "Like the love you bestowed on our sister, Ren?" He questioned, watching the faintest of emotions flicker across Akito's beautiful face. "I have no need for your affection, Akito."

"You always _did_ favor her, didn't you, brother..." Akito murmured lightly, his tone coming slightly darker at the mention of Ren's name.

"You _know_ that I loved her, Akito." Kazuma responded coldly, holding his stance as the others watched the interaction in silence...waiting for the outcome.

"Still so much resentment towards me after all this time?" Akito questioned, his voice coming almost sorrowful in his lament.

"Did you expect something different from me, Akito? My affection? If you had _any_ love in your heart for me, brother, you would have heeded my pleas to temper your hand towards our sister." Kazuma whispered, his voice laced with pain as he took in the look of complete disregard on Akito's face.

"What I did to Ren was for the good of this family." Akito's words came cool and lacking in remorse. "She knew our laws, and she chose to throw our family into chaos with her reckless decision to love a mortal. She left me no choice." He continued, his voice becoming almost rueful as his expression held nothing at all in the way of emotion. "Believe me when I tell you that I took no pleasure in her fate, brother."

"A fate you were quick to impose." Kazuma quipped, gazing into his brother's eyes, meeting his placid expression of nothingness.

"Well..." Akito mused, the lightest flicker of a smile gracing his beautiful features. "I will confess that while my love for my family is infinite...my patience is not. But I mourned her fate as you did, brother." He murmured, his tone growing low as he gazed intently at Kazuma. "We could have consoled each other, but instead you left me to mourn alone."

"How could I _possibly_ have found solace in the arms of my sister's executioner?" Kazuma spat, taking Akito by surprise before his features finally settled into an expression of serenity.

"Then tell me something, Kazuma." His voice came smooth on the heels of baited breath. "Enlighten me... Why _have_ you decided to show your face to me after all this time? Since you still so clearly disapprove of my actions." His dark gaze came inquisitive as it burrowed intently into Kazuma. "Was this happy reunion merely to open old wounds, brother?" He asked, this question lightly whispered as he quietly murmured. "Why have you come..."

Silence fell upon them. A silence that seemed to span an eternity before Kazuma gently parted his lips to gently dispel its hold on the moment.

"...Kyo..." This response to Akito's inquisition came soft, quietly summoning the child from the shadows as the room fell into silence.

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**A/N: Interesting translation for my readers. Akito's greeting, ****"Ave, frater eius quos ego diligo." is Latin for "Hail, brother whom I love."**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: So this comes as the completion of this story. The second half of the epilogue. Enjoy, and please don't forget to review. And a special thanks to those who have. It means the world to me. You guys keep me writing.**

**Again, this story comes dedicated to SweetLiars per request, and is a prequel to my story "Love Like Death"**

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Kyo entered into the larger room where his father had gone, and became keenly aware of the eyes falling upon him. So many. There...were so many. He was taken aback by the sheer number of his kind. And...they were all looking at _him_. And as he came to stand at his master's side, he was once again overwhelmed by the overpowering presence of death. Taking in the bodies of the dead and dying before his eyes beheld the beauty of the one standing before him.

He stared in complete wonder and entrancement as the angelic being in white stared back at him with a gaze so dark and cold, it could have frozen the very fires of Hell itself. And Kyo watched the ethereal creature of beauty absorb his existence like a mortal blow, his lips curling in the most horrific snarl as a painfully high pitched, feral screech was wrenched from his body. And the whole host of undead rose up in their wailing to their master's cry as Kyo covered his ears in fear and pain.

"SILENTIUM!" Akito shrieked above the wailing of the others as his hand flew out to silence them.

"...what treachery is this...?" This question came in the lightest breath of a whisper, harboring all of Akito's rage as he gazed intently at Kazuma.

"This is no treachery, brother." Kazuma responded evenly, standing firm in the face of his brother's anger.

"You betray me with this abomination!" Akito spat, causing Kyo to blanch at palatable force of his harsh words.

"Kyo is my son. The embodiment of my compassion, Akito. Something you would know nothing of, my brother. But I ask it of you now." Kazuma spoke, placing a gentle hand on Kyo's shoulder to still the child's fear.

"I have no need for your idealism of compassion." Akito hissed, his dark gaze burrowing in into his brother.

"You saw value in my heart once, brother." Kazuma murmured lightly, and watched as Akito took this in with a level of sobriety before his expression became once again beautifully placid...revealing nothing of the rage he had displayed only moments before.

"That was so long ago..." Akito whispered quietly. "Too long have you been away, Kazuma. The fate of our beloved sister, and your absence, have long left me cold."

"You claim to have love for me, Akito. Then...do as I ask out of this great love, brother. Stave your hand towards my son. Welcome him home." Kazuma pleaded, his expression tender as he spoke on behalf of the child. "Do this for me, and I will willingly accept my just fate." And Kyo's crimson gaze immediately snapped from the ethereal creature before him to his father in complete panic.

"Kazuma! What the hell are you doing?!" Kyo spat, confusion flooding his expression as his voice quavered with emotion.

"Still this creature, brother, or so help me I will not be merciful." Akito murmured with cold intent, his colder gaze driving into the heart of the boy before glancing back at Kazuma.

"Kyo! Silence!" Kazuma spat in frustration, startling Kyo into silence. "Peace, child." He murmured gently, soothing Kyo's confusion and anxiety. "This is not your quarrel, son."

"Kazuma..." Akito murmured, his tone cold and dark as it drew Kazuma's attention once again. "You ask me to embrace this _creature_ into the folds of our family. But...I cannot. Though it is true that I still have much love for you, brother, you ask too much of my good nature."

"Akito...please." This whispered plea graced Kazuma's lips as he met his brother's merciless gaze.

"This..._thing_...will _never_ be family, Kazuma." Akito murmured gently, his expression placid as he spoke these cruel words. "But, I will promise you this, brother. And _only_ this. No harm will come to your precious abomination. It can come and go as it pleases under my protection. And I will not deny it what it needs to exist." He stated, his exotic dark onyx gaze burrowing into Kazuma as he continued. "_This_...is what I offer to that creature. Accept this gift of my good will on its behalf, or condemn it to its just destruction. It matter's not to me." Akito's tone came indifferent as he finished. "But no love will I give it. This you cannot ask of me."

"So you promise that no harm will come to my son." Kazuma confirmed, his expression coming weary and full of misgiving towards his brother's offer.

"You have my word." Akito cooed tenderly, his expression earnest as he looked from Kyo back to Kazuma. "Does this leave you satisfied, brother?" This question lulled from his lips, softly whispered with a smile.

And Kazuma knew that there was no further room for dispute. The deal had been made. His son's safety secured. And with a level of bitter solace, he gave a small nod of concession.

"It does."

"Then come. Embrace me, and accept your fate." Akito cooed tenderly, beckoning Kazuma with open arms. "It is good that you should go to be reunited with our sister. Too long have you mourned for her." His features furrowed in the most exquisite expression of sympathy as Kazuma slowly approached. "Let us end this, brother. Allow me to ease your suffering."

"Kazuma don't _do_ this!" Kyo screamed, only to be met with the gentlest of sighs from his creator as Kazuma glanced over his shoulder to gaze tenderly at the boy.

"Still such a troublesome son." He met Kyo's pained expression with a warm, comforting smile. "I embraced my fate fully and completely from the very moment I laid eyes on you, child. What is done is done. I promised that I would always keep you safe. A promise I took great pains to fulfill. So understand that what I do now, I do out of great love for you. My son." He murmured. "My beloved." And with that he turned away to drift towards the angelic being waiting for him with open arms, leaving Kyo completely stunned into horrified silence.

"How very touching..." The words came lightly murmured from Akito's lips as they twisted into a smile.

Kazuma approached the waiting angel as silence once again fell upon the moment. On the heels of baited breath, he closed the space between them as the two embraced. The action came so profoundly intimate that Kyo averted his gaze for a moment. And as the two held each other, Akito rested his head lightly on his brother's shoulder, molding his form to Kazuma in a way that made the two appear as one. Finally united through the action of Kyo's creation.

"Kazuma." Akito whispered against the flesh of his brothers neck, his breath coming so warm and inviting. "It has been too long since we last embraced each other. I have truly missed you, and know that your fate brings me to tears." His lips quivered with emotion against Kazuma's skin as he held the man a little tighter in desperation. "The last of my heart dies with you, brother. But before you embrace your fate...know this." His voice came so light...so low...that only Kazuma could hear it as the words fluttered to his waiting ear. "I have learned much in your absence, Kazuma. With Ren gone, and you soon to follow her, there is only one thing left." He whispered. "One thing that I will finally obtain once I usher you to your end." And Kazuma felt his brother's lips form in a malicious smile against his cold flesh, causing him to tremble under the sensation in Akito's arms. "With the removal of chaos and your precious temperance...there will finally be _perfect_ obedience. And it will be so beautiful, brother. Compliance...through absolute love and devotion. To me. So take solace in your actions, brother. But know that, while you may have managed to ensure the safety of your abomination...despite your betrayal..." The briefest of silence was followed by the lightest laughter as Akito raised himself on his toes so his lips met Kazuma's ear.

"I would have come to kill you anyway."

Before Kazuma could fully absorb the treachery his brother had revealed, he was violently pinned to the wall by force. In the breath of a heartbeat his throat was ripped open, and Akito began to viciously feed on him as he pushed him against the wall. Akito's virgin garments came stained with Kazuma's blood as the man grew weaker. Yet Akito showed no mercy, and was relentless as he drained his brother of life. Of strength. Of all that Kazuma was. It was only when his legs gave way to his weakness and impending fate that Akito finally released his brother, allowing Kazuma to fall to his knees before him.

The room stilled for a moment, falling into an eery silence of anticipation as Akito remained motionless. Staring at Kazuma, he didn't even move to draw away the crimson remnants of his punishment from his lips and chin. And through the silence came a sound. The most disturbing of sound that emanated from the celestial creature of breathtaking beauty. It started as the softest of sighs, that built upon itself into a low, almost feral hiss of disdain.

"Kazuma!" The tortured scream wrenched itself from Kyo's lips as he was forcefully restrained by another...one with a wry smile and soft, almost gentle brown eyes.

Forced to his knees, Kyo watched as the silent angel gracefully drifted away from Kazuma. In movements that were so agonizingly beautiful, the ethereal, unworldly creature grasped for something that shown menacingly in its metallic quality. And Kyo was filled with a fresh sense of horror as the sound of dragging metal on stone filled the silence.

He watched, eyes wide with horrified disbelief as Akito silently moved back to Kazuma's side. The demonic angel's expression remained placid as his fingers gripped the katana in his hand. Kyo's eyes squeeze shut against the impending scene as tears helplessly trailed down his cheeks, and through the silence he heard a voice whisper to him.

"Do not disrespect your master by turning away, creature." Akito hissed quietly, his gaze remaining on Kazuma's weakened body as he addressed the child. "Take heart in his fate. What he does now...he does out of love...for you." He whispered, causing Kyo's eyes to flutter open through his tears.

He struggled helplessly against the arms that restrained him as his agonized screams of pain and rage filled the room. Kyo watched the almost beautifully slowed movement of the blade as it came to sever the head of his beloved father. And in that moment there was so much pain. So much agony. And sorrow. Grief that he had never felt before, even in his mother's passing. And it immobilized him as his body completely gave up fight.

Kazuma was gone.

...his father...was gone...

And as he was made to stare helpless at the grotesque image of Kazuma's severed head beneath Akito's feet, Kyo felt a part of himself die. Never to be reclaimed.

He was truly...alone.

The arms of his captor released him, and though Kyo was now freed from his confines he found himself strangely stilled in disbelief. And he gazed in horrified wonder as slender, pale fingers stretched out to grasp and intertwine themselves into once dazing silver hair as Kazuma's head was lifted from the stone floor. Kyo stayed in his place on the floor, numbly taking in the surreal event as Akito held Kazuma's head above him for all to see. To behold. In order to take fair warning to betrayal that would not kindly be dealt with. Silently. Calmly. Coolly. Akito took in the varied expressions of his children before he spoke.

"Look closely, children, and learn well." His voice rang clear and beautiful like the holiest of church bells. "This is the price of betrayal to your family." And he raised Kazuma's severed head just a littler higher for them to bear witness.

"We have laws for good reason!" His voice came stern. "And they be but few." And Kyo watches as the angel's blood painted lips curled into the most agonizingly beautiful snarl.

"Give me obedience!" His voice raised to the host of undead. "And you will know my love..." And at the drop of Kazuma's severed head to the stone floor below, there came such a cacophony of elated screeching that Kyo curled in on himself in terrified horror.

Trembling on the floor as the sound of terror ebbed and flowed back into quiet, Kyo didn't even take notice of the form standing next to him.

"Shigure..." The voice whispered, gaining the attention of the one who had held Kyo bound during the execution. "See that the body is taken care of. I want it out of my site." The voice purred gently. "Burn it." And with that Kyo's captor did as he had been told in silent dismissal.

"You are free to stay or go." The voice lulled again, gaining Kyo's attention as he helplessly raised his weary head to meet a dark onyx stare. "But do not easily show your face to me, monster." And with that whispered warning Kyo watched Akito gracefully drift away in silence without a second glance as he made his way into shadow.

And Kyo was left alone. In complete silence.

**The End**


End file.
